What Are The Hottest Green Jobs?

The Clean Tech Job Trends 2009 report shows that the most popular green jobs in the U.S. are available in renewable energy, with the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles metro area having the most job activity.

The rankings are based on the abundance of job postings on leading recruiter sites, green investment in the area and any patents that have been filed for clean energy.

Making and installing solar power systems already accounts for an estimated 770,000 jobs globally, and in the U.S. alone, more than 3,400 companies in the solar sector employ 25,000 to 35,000 workers. Photo: Flickr/Wayne National Forest

Creating green jobs has been a focus under the Obama administration, and it helps that clean energy is receiving attention from investors. The Clean Tech report notes that venture capital totaled $3.35 billion in this industry in the U.S. last year, with the number reaching more than $13 billion globally.

International companies represented 60 percent of the report’s “Top 10 Clean-Tech Employers,” but the U.S. representation varied in geography and industry. It included companies based in Illinois, Washington, Arkansas and California, and covered energy acquired from the sun, water and electric motors.

The Clean Tech report also predicted the future trends of green jobs, including career training on college campuses and more of a focus on end-use markets in the manufacturing process. This involves maximizing the efficiency of energy-use, such as using more energy during non-peak hours.

The full report also provides median pay levels for green positions, which range from $36,100 to $106,000. Many do not require a college degree and focus more in the building and technician sector.